As Tyler O'Neil has written for PJ Media, the communist regime of China has arrested about 100 Chinese Christians. Among those arrested was Pastor Wang Yi. Realizing that the Chinese government was going to soon be going after his church, Pastor Yi wrote a letter in September explaining why he disobeys the rulers God has placed over him. He instructed members of his church to release the letter if he was detained for more than 48 hours.
Translated by Brent Pinkall and Amy Cheung, Pastor Yi's letter is eloquently written and deserves to be read in full. To that end, I've included the letter in its entirety below. As you read it, praise God for Pastor's Yi's faith, his concern for his captors, and his commitment to obeying God above man. Likewise, pray for Pastor Yi and his flock — for their faith not to waver, for their protection, and for the salvation of his captors.

On the basis of the teachings of the Bible and the mission of the gospel, I respect the authorities God has established in China. For God deposes kings and raises up kings. This is why I submit to the historical and institutional arrangements of God in China.

As a pastor of a Christian church, I have my own understanding and views, based on the Bible, about what righteous order and good government is. At the same time, I am filled with anger and disgust at the persecution of the church by this Communist regime, at the wickedness of their depriving people of the freedoms of religion and of conscience. But changing social and political institutions is not the mission I have been called to, and it is not the goal for which God has given his people the gospel.
For all hideous realities, unrighteous politics, and arbitrary laws manifest the cross of Jesus Christ, the only means by which every Chinese person must be saved. They also manifest the fact that true hope and a perfect society will never be found in the transformation of any earthly institution or culture but only in our sins being freely forgiven by Christ and in the hope of eternal life.
As a pastor, my firm belief in the gospel, my teaching, and my rebuking of all evil proceeds from Christ’s command in the gospel and from the unfathomable love of that glorious King. Every man’s life is extremely short, and God fervently commands the church to lead and call any man to repentance who is willing to repent. Christ is eager and willing to forgive all who turn from their sins. This is the goal of all the efforts of the church in China—to testify to the world about our Christ, to testify to the Middle Kingdom about the Kingdom of Heaven, to testify to earthly, momentary lives about heavenly, eternal life. This is also the pastoral calling that I have received.
For this reason, I accept and respect the fact that this Communist regime has been allowed by God to rule temporarily. As the Lord’s servant John Calvin said, wicked rulers are the judgment of God on a wicked people, the goal being to urge God’s people to repent and turn again toward Him. For this reason, I am joyfully willing to submit myself to their enforcement of the law as though submitting to the discipline and training of the Lord.
At the same time, I believe that this Communist regime’s persecution against the church is a greatly wicked, unlawful action. As a pastor of a Christian church, I must denounce this wickedness openly and severely. The calling that I have received requires me to use non-violent methods to disobey those human laws that disobey the Bible and God. My Savior Christ also requires me to joyfully bear all costs for disobeying wicked laws.
But this does not mean that my personal disobedience and the disobedience of the church is in any sense “fighting for rights” or political activism in the form of civil disobedience, because I do not have the intention of changing any institutions or laws of China. As a pastor, the only thing I care about is the disruption of man’s sinful nature by this faithful disobedience and the testimony it bears for the cross of Christ.
As a pastor, my disobedience is one part of the gospel commission. Christ’s great commission requires of us great disobedience. The goal of disobedience is not to change the world but to testify about another world.
For the mission of the church is only to be the church and not to become a part of any secular institution. From a negative perspective, the church must separate itself from the world and keep itself from being institutionalized by the world. From a positive perspective, all acts of the church are attempts to prove to the world the real existence of another world. The Bible teaches us that, in all matters relating to the gospel and human conscience, we must obey God and not men. For this reason, spiritual disobedience and bodily suffering are both ways we testify to another eternal world and to another glorious King.
This is why I am not interested in changing any political or legal institutions in China. I’m not even interested in the question of when the Communist regime’s policies persecuting the church will change. Regardless of which regime I live under now or in the future, as long as the secular government continues to persecute the church, violating human consciences that belong to God alone, I will continue my faithful disobedience. For the entire commission God has given me is to let more Chinese people know through my actions that the hope of humanity and society is only in the redemption of Christ, in the supernatural, gracious sovereignty of God.
If God decides to use the persecution of this Communist regime against the church to help more Chinese people to despair of their futures, to lead them through a wilderness of spiritual disillusionment and through this to make them know Jesus, if through this he continues disciplining and building up his church, then I am joyfully willing to submit to God’s plans, for his plans are always benevolent and good.
Precisely because none of my words and actions are directed toward seeking and hoping for societal and political transformation, I have no fear of any social or political power. For the Bible teaches us that God establishes governmental authorities in order to terrorize evildoers, not to terrorize doers of good. If believers in Jesus do no wrong then they should not be afraid of dark powers. Even though I am often weak, I firmly believe this is the promise of the gospel. It is what I’ve devoted all of my energy to. It is the good news that I am spreading throughout Chinese society.
I also understand that this happens to be the very reason why the Communist regime is filled with fear at a church that is no longer afraid of it.
If I am imprisoned for a long or short period of time, if I can help reduce the authorities’ fear of my faith and of my Savior, I am very joyfully willing to help them in this way. But I know that only when I renounce all the wickedness of this persecution against the church and use peaceful means to disobey, will I truly be able to help the souls of the authorities and law enforcement. I hope God uses me, by means of first losing my personal freedom, to tell those who have deprived me of my personal freedom that there is an authority higher than their authority, and that there is a freedom that they cannot restrain, a freedom that fills the church of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ.
Regardless of what crime the government charges me with, whatever filth they fling at me, as long as this charge is related to my faith, my writings, my comments, and my teachings, it is merely a lie and temptation of demons. I categorically deny it. I will serve my sentence, but I will not serve the law. I will be executed, but I will not plead guilty.
Moreover, I must point out that persecution against the Lord’s church and against all Chinese people who believe in Jesus Christ is the most wicked and the most horrendous evil of Chinese society. This is not only a sin against Christians. It is also a sin against all non-Christians. For the government is brutally and ruthlessly threatening them and hindering them from coming to Jesus. There is no greater wickedness in the world than this.
If this regime is one day overthrown by God, it will be for no other reason than God’s righteous punishment and revenge for this evil. For on earth, there has only ever been a thousand-year church. There has never been a thousand-year government. There is only eternal faith. There is no eternal power.
Those who lock me up will one day be locked up by angels. Those who interrogate me will finally be questioned and judged by Christ. When I think of this, the Lord fills me with a natural compassion and grief toward those who are attempting to and actively imprisoning me. Pray that the Lord would use me, that he would grant me patience and wisdom, that I might take the gospel to them.
Separate me from my wife and children, ruin my reputation, destroy my life and my family – the authorities are capable of doing all of these things. However, no one in this world can force me to renounce my faith; no one can make me change my life; and no one can raise me from the dead.
And so, respectable officers, stop committing evil. This is not for my benefit but rather for yours and your children’s. I plead earnestly with you to stay your hands, for why should you be willing to pay the price of eternal damnation in hell for the sake of a lowly sinner such as I?
Jesus is the Christ, son of the eternal, living God. He died for sinners and rose to life for us. He is my king and the king of the whole earth yesterday, today, and forever. I am his servant, and I am imprisoned because of this. I will resist in meekness those who resist God, and I will joyfully violate all laws that violate God’s laws.
The Lord’s servant,
Wang Yi
"Over 100 members of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, China, were arrested beginning Sunday, December 9," China Partnership wrote. "At the time of publication of this translation, arrests are still being made. Among those taken away were Pastor Wang Yi, senior pastor of Early Rain, and his wife, Jiang Rong, who have not been heard from since Sunday."

Do you know how to determine a man is NOT of God?
When he says..."... for the sake of a lowly sinner such as I?"
If he is still a sinner, he is a servant of sin, and not a servant of God.

This "letter" is a warning that the false church is also in China.

Did you know Paul, nearing the end of his life said he was chief of sinners?

1 Tim. 1:15, This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

There is hidden here a very important principle that all of us will have to learn sometime or other. Whatever the flesh once manifested itself to be in our lives--some extreme form of evil, whatever we have done that is now, in our own sight, bad, ugly, and something we are ashamed of--we have to remember that that is an area of weakness that needs to be guarded very carefully, because we can return to that in an instant, no matter how long we have been Christians. That is what Paul is talking about.

Galatians 4: 16, Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

Do you know how to determine a man is NOT of God?
When he says..."... for the sake of a lowly sinner such as I?"
If he is still a sinner, he is a servant of sin, and not a servant of God.

This "letter" is a warning that the false church is also in China.

How long would ypu last over there?

China demolishes hundreds of churches and confiscates Bibles during a crackdown on Christianity
Locals in Henan stated concerns of a move by the atheist ruling Community Party to control Christianity
Residents were asked to replace posters of the cross and Jesus Christ with portraits of President Xi Jinping
Experts say the government is waging the most severe systematic suppression of the religion since 1982
Chinese leaders have 'always been suspicious of the political threat' that Christianity poses to the regime.

Typical local Christian Church destroyed after pastor was arrested and taken away to a "re-education" prison.

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Galatians 4: 16, Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

You are telling us this Pastor is not real because he does not buy into the Pharisaical brag on oneself doctrine???

No.
I am telling "us" that because Jesus said "no man can serve two masters"..."he will hate the one and love the other", plus His saying that "whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin", that this false pastor hates God. (Matt 6:24, John 8:34)

None of us have a right to criticize that Pastor.

Certainly not. if one is not a spiritual man. (1 Cor 2:15)

You are correct much of the Church world will say CORRECTLY "i am a wretched sinner saved by grace"..or "i am a sinner who trusts in Christs Imputed Righteousness to save me" ...

Only false Christians make that kind of statement.
The real ones say..."I WAS a wretched sinner... and..."I WAS a sinner...".
Those whose lives have been changed by the grace of God no longer cater to the now dead flesh, affections, and lusts. (Gal 5:24)

I never have or will trust anyone who says they are perfect and sinless.

Then you won't trust Jesus either.
He did command us to be..."perfect as your Father which is in heaven is perfect". (Matt 5:48)

I wonder if such people have seen the exceeding sinfulness of THEIR OWN SINS AND HOW WRETCHED THEY ARE WITHOUT JESUS CHRIST??

Thanks be to God for the gifts of repentance from sin and the Holy Ghost.
And verses like..."There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (1 Cor 10:13)

China demolishes hundreds of churches and confiscates Bibles during a crackdown on Christianity
Locals in Henan stated concerns of a move by the atheist ruling Community Party to control Christianity
Residents were asked to replace posters of the cross and Jesus Christ with portraits of President Xi Jinping
Experts say the government is waging the most severe systematic suppression of the religion since 1982
Chinese leaders have 'always been suspicious of the political threat' that Christianity poses to the regime.

We should include all the churches in the world in our daily prayers.

Typical local Christian Church destroyed after pastor was arrested and taken away to a "re-education" prison.

How could the "destroyers" miss that great big idol in the middle of the wall?
Kinda suspect, if you ask me...
Have they asked you for money yet?

I admire your stand against sin.It is something we need to hear.I know that i do.

But i think you are off center in a few areas.

Reverend Dake and every real Preacher i have ever learned from teach that a Christian can sin and fail.They need to repent and get right,ask for help and call the Elders if he hath committed SINS they shall be forgiven him.James 5 verses 13-16.

You teach that a person gets baptized in water to be saved and reach the blood of Christ.Then you say this baptized person can never sin.

That is false doctrine.

Any teaching of Scripture can be made to be unbalanced.

The Pastor and Church in China would shame most of us.It would me for sure.

Watchman Nee led a mighty revival in China and died a martyr in Chinese Communist prison.His books have influenced millions of believers all over the world.

The China Miracle by Arthur Wallis tells what has been going on over there.